CHAPTER ONE
Katarina
“Do we have a deal?”The dark soulless eyes of my fiancé bore into mine as he stands in front of me, feet spread wide. I’m tall for a woman, but he towers over me.
Not that I’m intimidated. I’ve known men like him my entire life.
Animals. Criminals. Beasts of carnage and opportunity.
Hell, I was raised by the worst of the worst. My father, head of one of the largest Bratva families in Russia, would slit my throat if he thought it would be advantageous.
Instead, he just sold me to this asshole.
I look around at the conference room we’re meeting in on the floor below my apartment. It’s technically an apartment too, but instead of having living room furniture, there is a large conference table with office chairs in the room.
We’re in the kitchen around the streamlined island that fills the space.
“Go over the terms again,” I say, studying the cuticles on my left hand where his ring glitters back at me.
It makes me snort in disgust every time I look at it. But I ignore the urge, focusing on his words instead.
It’s not that I didn’t hear them or understand the words he was saying the first time he said them. I’m testing him. During repetition, people will frequently give you additional information, as they elaborate, explain.
And they’ll expose more of their motivation or their lies.
He lets out a long breath through his nose, his nostrils flaring. Ryker Smith isn’t classically handsome like some of his brothers.
He appears more like the predator he actually is. “It’s like I told you. You sell me your casino for a million even?—”
“You’re certain I own one?” Leave it to my father to put the casino he uses to wash his dirty money in my name. He gets all the benefits, I get the consequences, should the government catch on.
“I’m certain.”
“And in return, I don’t have to marry you?” I cock my head, listening intently.
“That’s right.” He leans back, giving off the appearance of casual, but the tension rolls off him in waves.
For me, this is a win/win kind of situation. I get out of the arranged marriage that was another cage of my father’s making and I get the money that would allow me to start a new life.
I know the casino is worth a lot more than a million. I’m not stupid. But I don’t care. I didn’t even know it existed until five minutes ago. It’s like found money on the ground.
And, in selling this property to Ryker, I will fuck my father over. Which is my sole goal in life. And this sale will be just the beginning.
A plan begins to form of how I could use this money to really make my father suffer.
“But what about your deal with my brother? The one where you were sold a separate casino in exchange for protecting me from my father?”
He winces. It’s subtle but it’s there, and I sing with a bit of victory to have elicited the reaction. He just gave something away…
“Well?” I press, knowing I’ve found a weakness and the potential to receive some vital information.
“The deal will transfer—” He stops, his lips pressing into a grimace.
“To?” But my heart rate ticks up a few notches. Because I already know.
“Your sister, Sasha,” he answers looking away.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” I straighten, my hands clenching into fists as my chin notches and my shoulders expand. Sasha and I don’t have one of those sister relationships where we curl each other’s hair and talk about boys. We don’t even talk that much. But I love her more than any other person on this planet.
